Picking up from where I left off many months ago…
Inspired by the small layered photo work (shown at the end of my last post) I continued making abstract (all but one) layered photo works for our annual Same Same but… Different art exhibition at Sea Star Vineyards. On the wall hang my pieces with one of Joanna Rogers incredibly witty ‘armour’ pieces by the door and Stan Oglov’s whimsical sculptures in the foreground. This year the show was on the Victoria Day long weekend which meant good crowds, especially with our fine Pender Island weather.
Remember the Beaver Hat from my last post? Although the hat didn’t survive (hungry rodents attacked it when I left it out one night) I adapted The Tea Party from Alice in Wonderland and with the help of many friends presented it on Saturday afternoon, during our exhibition. The Mad Hatter’s Tea Party took place in the winery’s herb garden but other bits (the wandering Red Queen, the anxious White Rabbit) took place in and around the audience. Below is a photo of Chris Wakaluk portraying a slightly tipsy Lewis Carroll, who figured in many group photos taken by winery visitors that afternoon.
Spring on Pender and thoughts turn to cycling. I haven’t cycled much for almost 20 years but I pump up my tires every Spring – then ride a couple of times. I rode an electric moped in Hanoi and loved it. It would never climb the hills on Pender though, so I left it there. A few years later Sue had a work bike – a Rocky Mountain with a Bios electric assist. She loved it. This Spring I made my decision and ordered a Rad Power bike. Sue decided she’d like one too. We got three price reductions: by ordering two bikes and both being last year’s model. First to arrive was Sue’s RadWagon. She was working in town so I put it together and took it for a spin. I have to admit though, it did take me a couple of days, and some tough hills, to understand how to best use the electric assist. And this is one big bike to push up a hill if you don’t know how to use the assist properly!
My bike, a RadCity, arrived about a week later. I love my bike. I rode it to work almost everyday in the summer and early fall. I lost weight (Pender’s steepest hills are still a workout}. But my bike ride to work only takes five more minutes than by car. I’m only one of many folks who bought ebikes on Pender this year. These fat tired beauties really work on a small island with big hills.
Our new roommate, Harriet, spends most of her time sleeping. Or trying to get as close as possible. She found us at the Victoria SPCA. She had a room all to herself; she wouldn’t tolerate others. She did seem fragile. It took staff about 20 minutes to corral her for the trip home. We’re all happy to say that 9 months later she’s much more relaxed. Mostly she likes to sleep on us. As close as possible.
At least she’s not taking the car downtown like some people’s animal friends…
Hot hot summer. No rain. Lovely nights. I practiced my night photography, especially during the meteor showers. Both images below were taken at ParksCanada’s Nuit Blanche event at Roesland.
The above 30 second time exposure displays a variety of movements: the ferry’s long streak, the plane coming in from the left only manages a short, fasters, line and the stars show little movement. Below, a longer exposure, the North Star is steady while all others leave light streaks.
Another favourite summer activity: kayaking. I often launch from Medicine Beach on Bedwell Harbour. It’s close to home and to paddle the whole harbour shoreline takes an hour or more. On either side are points that may provide thrills and chills in the rips. The current in the canal can also be strong. However, the canal is a fun place to poke around, providing there’s not a lot of power boat traffic. The many beaches, large and small, call out for refreshing pause.
The long hot summer benefitted local crops. Hope Bay Hop Farm had one of their best ever harvests. Most of them went to Hoyne Brewery, in Victoria, for the seasonal Wolf Vine fresh hopped pale ale. Volunteers harvest the crop and are rewarded with a luncheon and fresh beer from Hoyne. One of the most fun volunteer opportunities on Pender!
We live in a beautiful part of BC. But BC is suffering, like many other parts of the world, from huge wildfires. Maps of the smoke showed less smoke here than much of the West. Yet we did get days of smoke and that smoke inhibited people’s vacation plans. The photo below shows Bedwell Harbour in mid-August. Normally you’d see up to a dozen boats anchored in close and many more out by the marine park, Poets Cove with the customs check-in and silhouetted in the harbour entrance. The wildfires’ smoke creates an ominous mood, even at this distance from their devastation.
Finally Summer turns to Fall…
… and the clouds roll in.
Thoughts turn once again to travel. We’ve started booking our winter journey: back to India, picking up where we left off on our journey to the subcontinent’s southern tip. As we near the Winter Solstice I anticipate the warm air, water and people of India.
